Why the Rage?

Why do the nations rage
and the peoples plot in vain?
The kings of the earth rise up
and the rulers band together
against the Lord and against his anointed, saying,
”Let us break their chains
and throw off their shackles.”

Kiss his son, or he will be angry
and your way will lead to your destruction,
- Psalm 2:1-3, 12

With all the turmoil in our nation and in our world, this song-prayer could well have been written today. Some of the phrases might need to be shifted a bit, but it’s not far off is it?

In the image of the nations are trying to throw of ‘the chains’ of Yahweh, what we’re really seeing is whole groups of people saying that they absolutely do not want to follow the ways of God. Think of Jesus’s care for the poor, the marginalized, and the alien - these are the sorts of things that come to mind as ‘the chains’ that people are throwing off. Instead, they want higher profits, more political power, or more control over their enemies. “Love your enemy” and “It’s more blessed to give than to receive” can feel like shackles to those committed to their own ascendancy.

A lot of this song-prayer hints that a Messiah will come, and that opposing God is opposing the Messiah. The Messiah is even presented as ‘his son’ - a nice tie in to Jesus. But notice that what’s desired (the image of God’s anger here really is just a foil to emphasize it): a kiss, intimacy. And for those who won’t draw near to God and God’s ways there’s a bleak warning: ‘your way will lead to your destruction.’ So when you dig beneath the surface, this Psalm ends on this high note of God’s yearning for us to flourish, not to languish - and God knows that essential to flourishing is being connected to Christ, the Messiah.

What raging of the nations is bothering you today? What raging inside of you can you notice today? Can you sense how all of this rage is leading to destruction? And what might it look like for you to ‘kiss his son’ today?